Rhetoric
The Rhetoric Department is dedicated to teaching the history, principles, and theories of rhetoric to students with intellectual curiosity and a desire to pry deeply into the workings of our symbolic universe. We define rhetoric as the ethical study and use of symbols (verbal and nonverbal) to publicly address controversial issues. We offer coursework devoted to the rhetoric utilized in legal, political, sports, religious, and media contexts as well as in classical and contemporary time periods. We also sponsor co-curricular opportunities where students put the theoretical principles behind argumentation and deliberation into practice on- and off-campus. Studying rhetoric helps students become effective speakers, listeners, and writers; understand their roles as ethical actors and citizens; and analyze how a variety of texts function persuasively. Such preparation leads students into productive careers in legal, political, professional, and academic contexts.
Student Learning Goals
- Rhetoric as a Liberal Art: to identify and understand the historical and contemporary role of the field of rhetoric in the liberal arts, including but not limited to rhetoric’s origins, historical place in the trivium, contemporary applications in theory, criticism, and practice, and the importance of rhetoric in daily life.
- Critical Thinking: to acquire abilities in analytical reasoning, argumentation, problem solving, and critical decision making.
- Written and Oral Expression: to develop the facile written and oral skills needed to communicate effectively and ethically.
- The Methodologies of Rhetorical Studies: to learn and use rhetorical methods to generate and answer significant questions about public discourse while demonstrating analytical insight and creativity.
- Rhetoric and Democratic Practices: to understand the role of rhetoric in the productive functioning of democracy and the practices of citizenship and civic engagement.
- Intellectual Inquiry: to engage in independent intellectual inquiry that applies advanced research skills in rhetorical studies and demonstrates an ability to understand, evaluate, and synthesize relevant information.
- Engaging Difference Humanely: to encounter productively, engage, and manage diverse life experiences, worldviews, and cultures.
Introductory Level Courses (100)
Introductory courses focus on effective, valid, and ethical message creation and presentation in public contexts. Students become competent in a variety of effective communication techniques, learn to cope with communication apprehension, engage difference humanely, and develop and exercise skills in critical thinking, argument formation, and argument analysis. Students also understand the role of rhetoric in the productive functioning of democracy and the practices of citizenship and civic engagement.
Intermediate Level Courses (200)
Intermediate level courses focus on concepts and theories of rhetoric. This study includes the history, theoretical development, and pragmatic uses of the concepts and theories in a variety of settings. Students develop the ability to evaluate, compare, and critique these concepts and theories. Students also apply these concepts and theories through the analysis and production of rhetoric.
Advanced Level Courses (300)
Advanced level courses focus on academic research and public scholarship. Students learn to engage primary source material in theory and criticism and to produce new insights. Papers and projects will be of high quality, explore rhetorical studies literature, utilize theoretical approaches and rhetorical methods, and illustrate an awareness of the historical and social roles of rhetoric.
Capstone Course (497)
The capstone course for rhetoric majors focuses on an original and extended research project. Students will produce a high-quality work that applies theoretical approaches to provide novel insights into texts, possesses a substantial literature review, and involves significant revision. In the process, students read and discuss relevant texts and journal articles as a class. This course also provides senior majors a forum for the investigation and discussion of the responsibilities they have as social actors.
Requirements for a Major
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| RHE-101 | Public Speaking | 1 |
| or RHE-140 | Argumentation & Debate | |
| RHE-201 | Reasoning & Advocacy (Fall Only) | 1 |
| RHE-320 | Classical Rhetoric (Spring only) | 1 |
| RHE-350 | Contemp Rhetorical Theory & Criticism (Fall only) | 1 |
| RHE-497 | Senior Seminar (Fall only) | 1 |
| One 300-level Rhetoric Elective course | 1 | |
| Three additional Rhetoric Elective courses (any level) | 3 | |
| Total Credits | 9 | |
Recommended Sequence of Courses:
We recommend Rhetoric majors begin in RHE-101 Public Speaking or RHE-140 Argumentation & Debate during freshman year, take RHE-201 Reasoning & Advocacy and RHE-320 Classical Rhetoric sophomore year, RHE-350 Contemp Rhetorical Theory & Criticism junior year, and RHE-497 Senior Seminar senior year. Students may take elective courses at any point.
It is strongly recommended that students complete the entire core (101 or 140, 201, 320, and 350) prior to 497 the fall of their senior year. For planning purposes, students should keep in mind that RHE-201 and RHE-350 are Fall courses while RHE-320 is a Spring course. Rhetoric majors who intend to study abroad should plan to take these core courses during their sophomore year if they will be abroad the semester it is offered in their junior year.
Although we recommend the above sequence, students considering a Rhetoric Major can take courses in a different (i.e., non-numerical) order. For example, a student can take RHE-201 Reasoning & Advocacy even if he has not yet enrolled in RHE-101 Public Speaking. Similarly, a student can take RHE-320 Classical Rhetoric and/or RHE-350 Contemp Rhetorical Theory & Criticism even if he has not yet taken RHE-201 Reasoning & Advocacy. Students may also take core courses simultaneously, although we do not recommend taking more than two core courses in the same semester.
Senior Comprehensive
Majors must pass two departmental examinations:
- a three-hour written exam; and
- a senior oral presentation.
Requirements for a Minor
| Code | Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| RHE-101 | Public Speaking | 1 |
| or RHE-140 | Argumentation & Debate | |
| RHE-201 | Reasoning & Advocacy (Fall only) | 1 |
| RHE-320 | Classical Rhetoric (Spring only) | 1 |
| or RHE-350 | Contemp Rhetorical Theory & Criticism | |
| Two Rhetoric Elective Courses (any level) | 2 | |
| Total Credits | 5 | |
RHE-101 Public Speaking
This course covers the fundamentals of rhetoric
composition and delivery. Students research,
compose, and deliver informative and persuasive
speeches, and they lead a small group of their
peers in a deliberative discussion. In addition,
students learn and employ introductory principles
of reasoning, argumentation, and rhetorical
criticism. Finally, they analyze the videotape
recordings of their speeches and learn to use
electronic media in public presentations.
Prerequisites: none
Credit: 1
Distribution: Language Studies
RHE-140 Argumentation & Debate
This course applies the principles of debate
theory and practice to argumentation in the
political and legal realms. Students will learn
valid forms of reasoning and argumentation,
common fallacies, argument analysis, clash, and
rebuttal and how to apply this knowledge in the
debate format. Students also participate in
parliamentary debate and moot court simulations
as mechanisms for learning foundational skills in
oral argumentation. When possible, students will
attend a live oral argument by the Indiana Court
of Appeals or another appellate court. This
course is typically offered in the spring
semester.
Prerequisites: none
Credit: 1
Distribution: Language Studies
RHE-187 Independent Study/Lang Studies
Individual research projects. The manner of study
will be determined by the student in consultation
with the instructor. Students must receive
written approval of their project proposal from a
department Chair before registering for the
course.
Prerequisites: none
Credits: 0.5-1
Distribution: Language Studies
RHE-188 Independent Study/Lit Fine Art
Individual research projects. The manner of study
will be determined by the student in consultation
with the instructor. Students must receive
written approval of their project proposal from a
department Chair before registering for the
course.
Prerequisites: none
Credits: 0.5-1
Distribution: Literature/Fine Arts
RHE-190 Spec. Topics: Language Studies
Refer to the Course Descriptions document on the
Registrar's webpage for topics and descriptions of
current offerings.
Prerequisites: none
Credits: 0.5-1
Distribution: Language Studies
RHE-201 Reasoning & Advocacy
This course focuses on the process of
constructing, analyzing, and evaluating public
arguments. This is a foundational rhetoric course
because it focuses on the development and
application of knowledge in critical thinking,
argument analysis, reasoning, and advocacy. It
emphasizes the nature and role of communication
in public discussions and decision making. The
course highlights the adaptation of logic and
reasoning to human action in a democratic
society. The class examines public argument in a
variety of forms such as political debates,
speeches, and editorials, Supreme Court
decisions, advertising, and popular culture.
Judicial argument is examined in the form of
Supreme Court decisions. Finally, social argument
is examined through an investigation of selected
examples from popular culture. The course serves
the purpose of exposing non-majors to the
fundamentals of rhetoric and communication. It
also prepares Rhetoric majors and minors for more
advanced courses such as Classical Rhetoric and
Contemporary Rhetorical Theory and Criticism.
This course is typically offered in the fall
semester.
Prerequisites: none
Credit: 1
Distribution: Language Studies
RHE-220 Persuasion
Students study the theory and practice of
persuasion as part of decision making in a free
society. The focus is on the individual's role as
both persuadee and persuader with an examination
of how to be critical, observant, responsible and
ethical with regard to persuasive messages. The
course examines persuasive language, propaganda,
persuasive campaigns, and social movements.
Students critically examine a variety of
persuasive texts and participate in a campaign
simulation.
Prerequisites: none
Credit: 1
Distribution: Language Studies
RHE-270 Special Topics Lit/Fine Arts
Refer to the Course Descriptions document on the
Registrar's webpage for topics and descriptions of
current offerings.
Prerequisites: none
Credits: 0.5-1
Distribution: Literature/Fine Arts
RHE-287 Independent Study/Lang Studies
Individual research projects. The manner of study
will be determined by the student in consultation
with the instructor. Students must receive
written approval of their project proposal from a
department Chair before registering for the
course.
Prerequisites: none
Credits: 0.5-1
Distribution: Language Studies
RHE-288 Independent Study/Lit Fine Art
Individual research projects. The manner of study
will be determined by the student in consultation
with the instructor. Students must receive
written approval of their project proposal from a
department Chair before registering for the
course.
Prerequisites: none
Credits: 0.5-1
Distribution: Literature/Fine Arts
RHE-290 Spec. Topics: Language Studies
Refer to the Course Descriptions document on the
Registrar's webpage for topics and descriptions of
current offerings.
Prerequisites: none
Credits: 0.5-1
Distribution: Language Studies
RHE-320 Classical Rhetoric
This course focuses on the origin and development
of rhetoric and rhetorical theory during the
classical period. The course begins in the pre
disciplinary stage of Homer and the Sophists and
examines such works as Homer's Iliad, Gorgias'
Encomium of Helen, and Isocrates' Antidosis. The
course then moves to Plato's Gorgias and Phaedrus
and the "disciplinizing" efforts of Aristotle (On
Rhetoric). Finally, the course examines the
efforts of Cicero (On Invention, Orator, and On
the Orator), Quintilian (Institutes of Oratory),
and Augustine (On Christian Doctrine) to reunite
philosophy and rhetoric and include ethics within
the realm of rhetoric. Students learn how
rhetorical theories are generated out of the
specific needs of particular political and social
contexts. In addition, students examine the
influence of literacy on human interaction and
the study of rhetoric in particular. Finally,
students trace the relationship between rhetoric
and philosophy from pre-Platonic unity, through
Plato's bifurcation, and finally to the attempts
at reunification by Aristotle, Cicero, and
Quintilian.
Prerequisites: none
Credit: 1
Distribution: Literature/Fine Arts
Equated Courses: CLA-220
RHE-350 Contemp Rhetorical Theory & Criticism
Contemporary studies in rhetoric have broadened
the conception of rhetoric beyond a narrow focus
on public address to include the study of all
symbols-verbal, audio, and visual-in diverse
media. No longer simply interested in questions
of persuasive effectiveness, contemporary
rhetorical studies examine the role symbols can
play in constructing or reflecting such elements
as ideology, motive, and gender. This
writing-intensive course highlights the growing
complexity of the field by helping students to
understand, use, and evaluate several of the most
well-known theories and methods of rhetoric. In
the process, students will learn how to interpret
artifacts in several different ways and even to
generate and apply their own rhetorical method.
Consequently, the class is a methodological
precursor to the senior project and should,
ideally, be taken during the junior year. This
course is typically offered in the fall semester.
Prerequisites: FRT-101
Credit: 1
Distribution: Literature/Fine Arts
RHE-360 Gender & Communication
As a culture, we often we take gender for
granted. Yet, we live in a culture where men and
women are molded and shaped by communicative
practices and mass-mediated representations that
generate our ideals of masculinity and
femininity. This class examines this
process-providing a platform for students to
reflect upon gender formation and develop a
theoretical vocabulary for describing this
process. By the end of the semester, class
participants will develop a more sophisticated
understanding of the manner in which gendered
messages and practices have shaped perceptions of
their symbolic universe.
Prerequisites: none
Credit: 1
Distribution: Literature/Fine Arts
RHE-370 Special Topics: Lit/Fine Arts
Refer to the Course Descriptions document on the
Registrar's webpage for topics and descriptions of
current offerings.
Prerequisites: FRT-101
Credits: 0.5-1
Distribution: Literature/Fine Arts
RHE-375 Legal Rhetoric
Legal Rhetoric examines the ways in which the
legal sphere exerts social control and power
through an exploration of the forms and function
of rhetoric in shaping the law. Working from the
belief that a legal ruling is the beginning,
rather than the end, of the social life of the
law, the course is also concerned with the social
repercussions that result from Court decisions.
Beginning with an examination of the classical
connections between rhetorical theory and the
practice of law, the course proceeds to discuss
approximately a dozen significant Supreme Court
cases and subsequent rhetorical analyses of these
decisions. Students will develop an essay and
presentation concerning the background and social
importance of one of the cases under study.
Additionally, students will engage in a
semester-long project that culminates in an
extensive rhetorical analysis on a case of their
own choosing.
Prerequisites: none
Credit: 1
Distribution: Literature/Fine Arts
RHE-387 Independent Study/Lang Studies
Individual research projects. The manner of study
will be determined by the student in consultation
with the instructor. Students must receive
written approval of their project proposal from a
department Chair before registering for the
course.
Prerequisites: none
Credits: 0.5-1
Distribution: Language Studies
RHE-388 Independent Study/Lit Fine Art
Individual research projects. The manner of study
will be determined by the student in consultation
with the instructor. Students must receive
written approval of their project proposal from a
department Chair before registering for the
course.
Prerequisites: none
Credits: 0.5-1
Distribution: Literature/Fine Arts
RHE-390 Special Topics/Lang Studies
Refer to the Course Descriptions document on the
Registrar's webpage for topics and descriptions of
current offerings.
Prerequisites: none
Credits: 0.5-1
Distribution: Language Studies
RHE-487 Independent Study/Lang Studies
Individual research projects. The manner of study
will be determined by the student in consultation
with the instructor. Students must receive
written approval of their project proposal from a
department Chair before registering for the
course.
Prerequisites: none
Credits: 0.5-1
Distribution: Language Studies
RHE-488 Independent Study/Lit Fine Art
Individual research projects. The manner of study
will be determined by the student in consultation
with the instructor. Students must receive
written approval of their project proposal from a
department Chair before registering for the
course.
Prerequisites: none
Credits: 0.5-1
Distribution: Literature/Fine Arts
RHE-497 Senior Seminar
The Senior Seminar is a capstone course for
rhetoric majors. Rhetoric majors conduct an
original and extended research project in a
sub-area of the field. In the process, they read
and discuss relevant texts and journal articles
as a class. The course covers procedures for
conducting each of the components of the project
(i.e., discovery and refinement of a research
question, selection of appropriate materials for
study, selection of an appropriate method,
literature review of appropriate scholarship, the
analysis itself, and the preparation of the
manuscript). This course also provides senior
majors a forum for the investigation and
discussion of the ethical issues and
responsibilities they have as communicators. This
course is offered in the fall semester.
Prerequisites: Students are encouraged to take
RHE 320 and 350 prior to taking 497.
Prerequisites: none
Credit: 1
Distribution: Literature/Fine Arts